Obscurity Within
by HippiestHop
Summary: Hunter takes a more proactive approach to keyword: onomatophobia, and it has negative effects on Cipher Nine's psyche. AU branching off of the beginning of Chapter II, no Watcher X.
1. Chapter 1

Anfrali stepped out of the room, maintaining his posture despite terror and fatigue brought upon him by this latest development. Mind control? Really? There was a reason he worked for the Empire, and it was to stay away from this high minded crap. While the Sith and the general Empire were more or less separate entities, each acting independently and often despite the other, the Jedi and Republic were much more closely intertwined. He was now bound to the Republic's will, which meant he was also controlled by the Jedi.

The Jedi were beacons of hope and justice of the world. Wonderful bastions of light that stole and trained child soldiers. Pillars of honesty and equality who had killed his parents and taken his sister from him because she was a force-sensitive human-colored zabrak while he and his family were a shade too red for their taste. How gentle and good they were, the fucking hypocrites.

Don't get him wrong, the Sith were far worse, but at least they didn't pretend they were good. At least they weren't oblivious enough to get off on being the saviors of the galaxy after striking a treaty with murderers and slavers. The Sith knew they were evil, reveled in it even, but what's worse, gaining followers through fear or blind idolization? Either way you were sent off to war behind them, so might as well support a government not as caught up in its force group's morals.

Like peace, for example. Peace, they cry, cutting his family in half when they try to protect his sister.

And, not unexpectedly, mind control. How wonderful.  
Anfrali closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath, then looked out on the team. Did they know? he wondered, scanning their faces. Saber was staring at him rather defensively while Wheel didn't seem to be paying attention, just carrying on work in the background. Chance was looking pointedly away, unable to meet his eyes, and Hunter... Well then. The bastard was smirking at him, a glint in his eye, because hijacking someone's body was something to smile about, apparently.

He clenched his jaw and strode to the bathroom, wanting to run but knowing it would only make him look weak. He wasn't weak. Anfrali turned on the faucet of the sink and watched the water pour out, taking calm from its unceasing motion. He splashed some on his face and turned it off, turning to lean against the sink and put his head in his hand.

"Don't tell me we hurt your feelings," Hunter's voice drawled from the doorway, and as much as Anfrali never wanted to see the man's face again, his need to keep an eye on all threats was higher.

"What do you want?" Anfrali replied, hoping his exhaustion wasn't audible.

"Oh, nothing much," the SIS agent replied, stepping forwards and letting the door swing shut behind him. "Just a kiss."

Anfrali fell into a defensive stance by impulse, but knew he could do nothing. As much as he wanted to shoot the man until he was one giant hole he needed to concentrate on the mission. Not to mention the fact that Kothe had forbidden it. "Stop fooling around."

Hunter pouted, not ceasing his advance. "Don't be like that, babe, you know I hate it when we fight." He halted uncomfortably close to Anfrali and leaned against the wall.

"You touch me, you die," the cipher replied.

"Just making a point, Legate. To say I have doubts about you being genuine would be far beyond an understatement, so keyword: onomatophobia." Hunter's grin only grew as Anfrali's body unwillingly relaxed. "You will never give out information to be used against me."

"Your boss already took precautions," the cipher replied, the hate he felt not showing in his lax face. "Do you really think you're special enough to need more?"

Hunter shook his head, a short chuckle escaping. "You just get better and better." He turned to leave, but then paused and turned back to face Anfrali. "Oh, and one more thing. What I said earlier? I wasn't joking. Kiss me."

Anfrali's body leaned forward and touched its lips to Hunter's. The cipher tried to tear himself away, claw off his face, _something_, but to no avail. Whoever came up with the idea of mind control had it all wrong. Maybe that's what the Jedi did, planted thoughts so that the subject treated them as if they were their own, but this was more like body control. He was all too aware of the pressure on his lips, the hand on the back of his neck, and how he very much wished he could tear Hunter in half.

"See, that wasn't so bad," Hunter said once it was over, keeping Anfrali's face close to his. "But since you didn't cooperate earlier, you need a punishment. Of course, you didn't know, so let's just go with..." and with that the SIS agent licked a stripe up either side of Anfrali's face. "You don't exactly taste the best," the man stated, pulling a face at the expressionless cipher and scraping his tongue on his teeth. "No use standing around in here any longer. We both have work to do, so hop to it, Legate."

Once the door had closed and he regained control of his body Anfrali shoved his head under the faucet again, this time to cleanse instead of refresh. His fingers scrabbled at the handle of the sink and his breathing was erratic until the water touched his face. The problem wasn't kissing someone when he didn't want to, seduction was one of his tools, if an often neglected one. No, it was the loss of control. When Intelligence had trained him to withstand torture they said that regardless of what happened to him, his body and mind would remain his. That didn't exactly apply anymore. His mind remained in his possession, but what was the use if he couldn't do anything with it? When every action was controlled by someone else, could he even gain solace by knowing that his mind was intact?

Either way, Cipher Nine was getting away from this place right now. No more posing, no more confrontations with Saber, Wheel, or Chance. No more.

He took a direct route from the bathroom to the exit, only pausing to tell Vector they were leaving. Hopefully Hunter wouldn't take too much delight in Anfrali's bloodless face or tense shoulders.

"Agent, we have sensed a change in your aura. Is all well?"

For a moment Cipher Nine wanted to tell him everything, but of course his body would not allow that. "Everything's fine with me, are you well?" he replied, his voice uncharacteristically monotone.

Vector walked silently half a step behind him until they got into his ship, then stated, "Your voice does not mesh with the song. Your words are not your own, but we will not pry. Alert us if you wish to talk further." Then the man fled to the cargo hold, sending a last, inquisitive glance back at Anfrali.

The cipher stepped in front of the holoprojector and the new Keeper flickered into existence. "Beginning encrypted message. We have one minute until Republic intercept. Report, Cipher Nine. Did you make contact with the SIS?"

"Yes, but there is a... complication," the agent replied, distinctly _not_ talking about the mind control. "I can't explain."

"You'll have to work around it," Keeper replied, and Anfrali caught a hint of fatigue in the hurried woman's tone. "Do not break cover until you know Arden Kothe's plan, am I understood?"

"Acknowledged and understood," Anfrali answered, his gut sinking as the projector powered down and Keeper vanished. "Do not break cover," he echoed to himself. That might be harder than expected.


	2. Chapter 2

Author Note: I would like to say that there won't be any pairings in this. This chapter might make it seem that way, but I promise you Chance's romantic crap won't last much longer.

* * *

A few weeks passed all too slowly. Kothe was absent for the most part, leaving Hunter in second command. They all went on minor missions, things that could be handled by one person, but Anfrali always had someone by his side. They obviously didn't trust him yet, but why they hadn't just ordered him to obey all of their commands he couldn't understand. The risk they took in letting him have any sort of autonomy was pointless, especially when it would be so easy to fix.

Hunter continued to torment him, running into him in secluded corners of the base 'on accident' and asking him to do demeaning things. Most of them weren't sexual in nature, just little tasks that would be more expected of a slave than an agent, but some of them were. It didn't bother him as much as it might have, he had had sex with quite a few people, and almost all of it for a mission, but Hunter always gave him a choice. Iron his shirt for him, or be forced to iron all of his clothes. Pretend to seduce him, or be forced to masturbate in front of him.

At first Anfrali always refused. He was never going to volunteer to please Hunter, and the man was just going to have to recognize that. Cipher Nine wasn't biddable and never would be. That's what he told himself anyway. The terror the words "keyword: onomatophobia" began to spark soon changed his mind. How ironic, to have onomatophobia for the word onomatophobia.

So here he was, tucked away in some corner of the base cleaning Hunter's feet. With his tongue. He had done numerous worse things for various people, but this cover was quickly becoming one of the more trying ones he had taken up yet. He had complete control, he had chosen to acquiesce with the SIS agent's demands, but Anfrali wasn't sure it was the best choice.

He knew what Hunter was doing, all agents were trained against psychological warfare. Cognitive dissonance occurred when a person couldn't handle the difference between their actions and their beliefs, so one changed to fit the other. In most cover operations their actions couldn't afford to change, so their mindset was slowly altered. When Anfrali had first encountered Hunter he had been disgusted at how the man abused his power. Now he was starting to be disgusted with himself for going along with it, for not resisting as much as he should. He knew it was happening, but that didn't mean he could stop it. Slow it down, maybe, remind himself why he was here and what his standing in the galaxy was, but being the Empire's agent with the highest success rate didn't help any when he would never be able to get the taste of Hunter's feet out of his mouth.

How low he had fallen.

"Alright, that's enough,"

Anfrali stood up slowly, not trusting enough to believe anything that came out of Hunter's. "Anything else you want me to do, _sir_?" He snarled, glaring at the man. Hunter tilted his head in thought then opened his mouth again. Cipher Nine flinched back at the slight "k" sound that escaped the man's lips, and it made Hunter smirk.

"No, you've been good today, Legate," Hunter replied, slinging a casual arm around the small Zabrak's shoulders. "But how many times do I have to tell you, call me Hunter, we're all equals here. Except for Ardun Kothe, of course. He's so much better than the rest of us he doesn't even get a codename."

Here Anfrali perked up, listening instead of blocking out, even temporarily allowing Hunter's offending arm on his shoulder. Was there internal resentment towards Kothe? Vector had told him the man was Force-sensitive, apparently his song harmonized or something, he wasn't always sure what the joiner was trying to say. Perhaps there was some resentment between him and the Jedi, or Hunter had a grudge against those who could use the Force. Anfrali's own loathing of Jedi and Sith was bound to the organization, not other types of Force-sensitives. People shouldn't be judged by their biological make up.

"Why doesn't he have a codename?" Cipher Nine demanded, repressing the uneasiness that bothered him when he was anywhere near Hunter.

One of the man's sculpted eyebrows rose. "Observant today, aren't we my strong little Legate?"

Anfrali tore away, teeth bared. "I'm not your anything. Come near me again and I'll bomb this base off of the face of the planet."

Hunter sighed at this, looking surprisingly disappointed. "You were doing so well, too. False threats are the weapon of the weak, so you of all people shouldn't resort to them." He pulled the Zabrak close, put a finger over the cipher's mouth, then whispered, "And you won't leave until you have something to send back to your little Imperial masters." He walked away, grinning, leaving Anfrali with wide eyes and clenched fists.

Hunter doesn't know that. He can't. Anfrali wouldn't be allowed in the base if they did know he was a double agent, or at least they would have forbid him from talking about their plans to outsiders. They didn't even ask him about the Empire's plans, and that showed they were sloppy. Hunter was just guessing. He had to be.

Cipher Nine walked out into the main room, arms and legs stiff. "Chance," he called out, ignoring Kaliyo's complaints that she was about to win their game of Sabacc. "We're off to Ord Mantell to investigate separatist movements."

The kid's face lit up, strangely enough. Anfrali would never understand how both Hunter and Chance could exist in the same organization when they were complete opposites. Then again, just because the kid looked like he couldn't hurt a fly doesn't mean he didn't kill the "Imperial scum," when they ran into trouble. He had actually said that once, screamed, "Die Imperial scum!" in a firefight. The kid probably watched too many holovids. Then, after everything was dead, Chance had apologized and asked if he had offended him. It was... oddly refreshing.

"Kaliyo?" he asked, taking it as acknowledgement when she flopped her head over the back of the chair. "Do you want in on this one?"

"Eh, sure, why not," she drawled. "Not like I've got anything better to do."

Saber, the one he came into contact with the least, besides maybe Wheel, caught Kaliyo's arm as she went to stand. "Wait, you can't go, you've got the... tournament, remember? You were going to enter a Sabacc tournament and cheat everyone out of their hard-earned creds."

Kaliyo stared blankly at her until a light seemed to flick on in the back of her eyes. "Right, the tournament. Yeah, sorry agent, I'll have to take a pass on this one. I gotta say though, this whole secret-republic-spy gig we've got going on is a whole lot better than what we had on the old Dromund Kaas. We've been lazing around here for weeks and they haven't kicked us out yet."

Anfrali nodded absentmindedly, if he didn't recognize her existence she would never stop talking, then turned to leave.

"C'mon agent, this is where you say 'you're the only one who's been lazing, Kaliyo. I've been on six missions an hour twenty eight hours a day, so perhaps you could do something to warrant the pay Keeper has oh so kindly allocated to you.' What's with you lately? You've been all quiet and shit."

He kept walking.

* * *

"Get down!" Cipher Nine shouted, tackling Chance to the ground. A small missile exploded on impact behind them. He left his companion and crouched behind a boulder, taking aim at the droid sending shots their way. One carefully timed shot to the head and it was down, the last of bit of a mission that had gone on far too long.

"Alright!" Chance cheered behind him, far too gleeful for a man who almost died a moment ago. "I wish I could shoot like you do. It's no wonder you were the top Imp."

The corner of Anfrali's mouth twitched. 'The top Imp' indeed. Which was why he had been assigned here, doing basic ops with a kid and catering to Hunter's every wish while his target was chronically absent. They didn't send Sith to do this kind of work.

Suddenly Chance lost his exuberance, biting his lip and looking down as he fiddled with his weapon. "Hey, I was, uh, I was wondering if you ever wanted to do something together. Outside of shooting up droids. I mean, uh, if that's what you like to do that's fine, but I just, nevermind."

...This was an interesting development. Anfrali observed carefully, noting every fidget and the light blush on the boy's cheeks. It appeared the request was genuine, however doubtful that seemed. "Are you asking me out on a date?"

Chance looked up at his amused face, still keeping his head awkwardly tilted down. "Yes?"

Anfrali shook his head. "I switched sides to work, not to- how old are you, anyway?"

"I'm not some kid," Chance responded, straightening and looking him dead in the eye. "You're only a few years older than me. Look, if you say yes and it doesn't work I won't bother you again, okay? Just one date."

The cipher sighed and brought a hand to the bridge of his nose. This wasn't something he knew how to handle. A real relationship of any sort was out of the question until he retired, if he retired. However, the kid was part of his mission and if Hunter really did know he wasn't loyal to the Republic he would need all the help he could get. "Fine. One date. Let's go."

"Right now?" Chance asked, his voice unusually high. "Oh- okay." he added, falling into step behind the already leaving agent.

* * *

Somehow Anfrali didn't think a seedy cantina on Ord Mantell was quite what Chance had had in mind for his date. It was what he was getting though, so he would just have to deal with it. There was no way the cipher was going out of his way, and sitting in one place for an extended period of time, vulnerable, on Nar Shaddaa was out of the question.

"Well, you certainly eat a lot."

Anfrali paused in his consumption long enough to answer, "I have two hearts. It increases my metabolism."

Chance blinked in surprise, then put his fork down. "Oh, wow, that's crazy. Do you need both of them? Like, if one got injured would you still survive?"

"I would rather not find out."

"But didn't your parents teach you?" Chance asked, abandoning his meal in favor of learning more about his new team member. "Didn't the Empire tell you in case you got hurt in the field and didn't know how to fix it? Anatomy is required in the Republic."

Anfrali finished his plate then leaned forward to answer the man's rapid fire questions. "Human anatomy is required. They don't exactly teach classes about every single alien species out there. I didn't know Zabrak were carnivorous until I was throwing up the fruit they tried to feed me."

"Right," Chance murmured. "I forgot the empire was so anti-alien. I guess that's another reason you flipped, huh?"

"The Empire's not the only one."

At that Chance slid back in his chair, eyes narrowed. "What are you trying to say."

"Nothing, forget it," Anfrali sighed, letting his attention stray to the other patrons in the place. There was an Ithorian playing darts, that wasn't something you saw every day.

"No, that wasn't nothing," Chance retorted, leaning over the table and staring at him avidly. "What did you mean?"

Refusing to answer would likely make the kid more suspicious, it was likely best to disillusion him. "What kind of anatomy were you taught? Human?" Chance nodded. "Were you made aware of any others? Saber is on your team, have you learned emergency first aid for her?" He shook his head ruefully when he saw Chance's alarmed expression. "You don't notice it because it doesn't apply to you. How many Zabrak have you met?"

Chance leaned back a little, going through his memory. "Six, maybe? Not very many."

"Right," Anfrali replied, watching his companion while also keeping track of a bulky trooper that had just entered. Republic armor didn't always mean there was a Republican inside, he knew that from experience. "And how many of those had skin redder than a human and tattoos that didn't make them look like a fish?"

Chance snorted and cracked a grin, but his eyes were grim. "Only you."

"If I asked you how many Humans you knew, you wouldn't know where to begin. Instead I ask you if you've known people like me, and you can't even think of one. There is a reason I was with the Empire."

"So then, why did you switch sides?"

Cipher Nine's face tightened. "That's not something I want to talk about."

"Look," Chance started, resting his elbows on the table. "I'm really sorry about the whole, you know, mind control thing. I was totally against it and I swear I'll never use it, not if I don't have to. I can't imagine-"

"It's time to leave," Anfrali interrupted, grabbing Chance and pulling him to his feet. The trooper was joining the game of darts, and that was never a good sign. He slapped some credits down on the table; It was more than their food was worth, but he was in a hurry, and the owners would need the extra to repair the damage. If the Ithorian got riled up as well, they might need surgery to fix their hearing, too.

"Wait, I was-"

Soon after they got outside an unearthly bellow rang from inside. "That's why we left," Anfrali stated, watching as the panicking masses fled from the building.

Chance let out a chuckle beside him, and soon the man was on his knees, struggling to breath through his laughter. The corners of Anfrali's mouth ticked up, and his eyes softened. Maybe it hadn't gone so horribly after all.


	3. Chapter 3

Chance stumbled to his feet, mouth spread in his ever-present grin. "We should totally do this again sometime. If- if you want to, I mean."

Anfrali hesitated. An hour ago he never would have considered it, but it had been... enjoyable. He was more relaxed than since he had returned to duty after Jadus, and the underlying fear that had been constant since his mind control was revealed wasn't clouding his mind quite so much. Additionally, the trust of the boy could very well be what gets him the information he needed. "I don't see why not."

"Really?" Chance asked, jubilant. "That's great! I'm so happy I could- Can I kiss you?" Then he realized what he had said and backed away, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, that wasn't what I meant to say, I promise. Forget I said anything."

But Anfrali had already frozen, eyes wide and throat constricted. The request was close, far too close, to what Hunter had originally asked of him. The threat was there, lurking behind the smiles and cheers. Anyone who knew the keyword was a danger; he was foolish to have ever felt safe. The boy had absolute power two words away, the only thing stopping him from using it his morals. Morals didn't last very long in their line of work.

So Cipher Nine kissed him. It was to keep control, to fend off the terror ready to pounce when given the signal. But how much control really saved if he did as he was ordered regardless?

Chance pushed him away. "Why did you do that?" he yelled, gesturing wildly.

"I- you wanted me to," Anfrali answered, stepping back further and trying to ignore his fear-driven pulse. He had chosen the best option, he knew he had. Keep the kid happy, keep Hunter happy, keep everyone happy so he could finish this damned mission, making Keeper- no, Minister of Intelligence now, he had to remember that -happy. He had done what Chance had asked for, so why was he being yelled at? "I don't understand."

"_You_ don't understand? How the fuck do you think I'm feeling? You were scared of me, I saw it on your face. I know you're-" He stopped there, glancing around at the attention they were drawing. "We're going back to Nar Shaddaa, right now."

* * *

Anfrali trailed behind Chance as the SIS agent raged through the base. The silent flight back had ended in the early hours of the morning, so the building was dark and quiet. All except for one room, that is.

Chance knocked on the door to Kothe's office. "Ardun?" he called softly. "I need your help with something."

After a moment the door swung open, and Ardun Kothe stood in the doorway. The man's eyes flicked from Chance to Cipher Nine and back, and his mouth tightened. "What is it, Chance?" he growled. "Are you having trouble with Legate?"

"No, sir," the SIS agent replied, pausing a moment to bite his lip. "Can we come inside?"

Kothe nodded and they filed in, Anfrali staying near the open door until the Force-sensitive invited them to sit down. The cipher obeyed, but remembered that the last time he had been in this room he hadn't had the choice to remain standing. He needed to use this time to analyze Kothe, as the man was often absent and the only time they had spent in the same room he had been unconscious for much of it.

"Alright Chance, what's the matter?"

Chance took a deep breath, glancing back at Anfrali before turning in his seat to face Ardun directly. "Legate's doing everything I say. Everyting."

Kothe raised an eyebrow, looking between the two of them. "I'm afraid I don't see the problem."

Chance stood suddenly, slamming his hand on the table. "Ardun, he's afraid of me, afraid of all of us. We're supposed to be the good guys, damn it!"

"Calm yourself, you're a professional." Kothe stood, walking around to their side of the table and grabbing Chance's shoulders to look him in the eye. "I don't like it either, but we do what we have to. This is a war. Every day we send good men and women to die, and if controlling one stray member of Imperial Intelligence saves even one I'm going to do it. Legate was the enemy, maybe even still is, and I am not going to assume his loyalty and risk everything."

Chance tore away from his leader then started pacing, bringing up his hands to grab at his hair. Finally he stopped, still ignoring Anfrali, and spoke to Kothe again, "I'm young. I'm idealistic. I know. But making volunteers into slaves to guarantee their obedience isn't something I can do. If you don't let him go I'm leaving." There was a sense of finality in his tone, but Anfrali couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"I can't," Kothe answered with a sigh. "I know that's not what you want to hear, but this isn't my choice. It's an irreversible procedure; it wasn't designed to be undone."

Anfrali's mind froze to the point that he didn't hear Chance's reply, and barely noticed the kid running out of the room. There was no cure? That was... no, Kothe had to be lying. Had to be making it up to get Chance off his back. He had to be, but he wasn't. Cipher Nine could tell.

"I'm sorry," Kothe said, jolting Anfrali out of his thoughts. "I really am. But I need to make sure you don't run off before I can get Chance to come to his senses. Keyword: onomatophobia. Don't leave." and with that Kothe left in pursuit of Chance.

Anfrali braced his elbows on his needs and put his head in his hand, the normal terror replaced with numb disbelief. His 'programming' wasn't a temporary fix until they could guarantee his loyalty, it was a permanent solution to a problem they weren't even sure if they had. Well, if hadn't been devoted to the Empire before, he certainly would be now. How unfortunate that he would never be able to show it.

He would never me able to reclaim his position in the Empire. Every SIS member doubtless had his description and key word. All information his superiors gave him could be extracted by the enemy with no effort at all. All of his training was wasted; he would never run an operation again. Not when simply existing made him a liability. Not when encountering an SIS agent in the field could make him turn on his allies. Not when he couldn't even leave this fucking room because some bastard with a Sabacc obsession had told in not to.

Cipher Nine stood and walked to the exit, but his foot froze before it passed through the doorframe. He set it down and started swinging at the air, his fists stopping on a dime where the wall would've begun. He stepped back, then spoke the words he had spent weeks fearing.

"Keyword: onomatophobia. Leave the room."

It started working, much to his surprise. His feet were moving without him telling them to, and for a moment it looked like he just might have found away around the mind control. Then he got to the doorway.

His legs crumpled under him and his head was on the ground before he noticed he was falling. Anfrali was on his knees, head tucked between them and hands clutching the back of his neck. His brain was on fire, and between that and the screaming any thoughts he might have tried to have were left as barely-formed fragments with no meaning. His eyes were closed but that didn't stop his mind from projecting impossibly bright sparks onto the backs of his eyelids. He couldn't think, he couldn't even feel except for the overwhelming pain encompassing his head. He tried to move, to tear off his head, to stop the pain, _anything_, but if Cipher Nine even had a body anymore he couldn't tell.

Then it stopped, and he rolled onto his back, outside of the room. His brain wasn't boiling alive anymore, but the aftershocks were still echoing through it. Anfrali opened his eyes, relieved when they obeyed him. It appeared he was back in control of his body.

He would have been happier Kothe and Chance's faces weren't hovering over him. He tried to leap to his feet but stumbled, his limbs struggling to get used to movement again.

"You were out for three hours," Kothe said, and Chance stood wordlessly behind him. "Everyone else is doing Hunter and Vector are on a mission, Saber tells me she and Kaliyo are out in the town for the day. No one has been here besides us. You're okay. What happened?"

Anfrali snarled and drew his knife, trying to lunge at the bastard and slit his throat. Chance flinched backwards, raising an arm to defend himself, but Kothe just stood there, and Anfrali's knife stopped a foot in front of his face.

"He can't hurt us, Chance," Kothe called, raising his arms to show he didn't mean any harm. "And you don't need to lash out, Legate. Listen, I'm a Jedi, and I'll do everything in my power to keep whatever hurt you from happening again."

He scrambled back, bared teeth and raised knife doing nowhere near enough to express his emotions. "You Jedi fucker," he screamed, voice cracking from disuse. "You might have my body, but you're never getting my mind!" Then Anfrali took his knife and slashed open his arms, grinning dully at Kothe and Chance's horrified gasps as he sank to the ground. It was a shame he had to go out like this; he had hoped to outlast the average cipher lifespan, at least.

The two Humans fell to either side of him Kothe starting to heal him with the force and Chance probably blubbering something about having so much to live for. The adrenalin that had been pumping through his veins before he had decided to open them made the cloud of blood loss settle rather quickly, so it was kind of hard to tell.

"Let me die," he muttered, trying to ignore the way his flesh was knitting itself up. Chance had returned with a bacta patch, funny Anfrali hadn't noticed him leaving. "Leave me alone," he continued, trying to flop his bleeding arm out of the SIS agent's grasp. He heard Kothe murmuring something and felt himself getting suspiciously tired, so he focused all of his remaining brain power on resisting the exhausted Jedi. "Get out of my head." He had been trained against the force, there was no way-

That was when Chance stabbed him with a sleep dart.

* * *

Yeah, I think I'm going to change the rating to M.


End file.
